Ahriana Platten

In Good Faith; Dialogue at the Crossroads of Religion

Interfaith Dialogue is considered an important way to address religious tension in our world, but many people who have attempted it have found it ineffective and frustrating. In Colorado Springs, a city that has a national reputation for being the “Evangelical Mecca” of the United States, we are using interfaith dialogue to build recognition, acceptance and interaction among a diverse cross-section of faith traditions that might otherwise be overshadowed by our “one-religion-city” status.

“In Good Faith,” a newspaper column read by over 100,000 readers, was Initiated in 2013 through the joint efforts of Rev. Ahriana Platten of Unity Spiritual Center in the Rockies, and John Weiss, Chair of The Colorado Springs Independent (a newsweekly).

Each week, the column features questions about faith, family, and life in the 21st century. Recently, “In Good Faith” has taken to the airwaves, providing a one-hour radio show that deepens the conversation. Both the column and the radio show serve as a springboard for on-going interfaith cafes, community social action efforts, and religious solidarity in times of crisis.

If you are ready to turn interfaith dialogue into interfaith action, this workshop is for you. It will provide you with practical tools for successful collaboration with religious leaders in your community. And, if you are interested in creating a comparable local media effort, you will walk away with an outline of the steps to take, proposal letters, format samples, and more! (Bring your cell phone to take pictures of the visuals.)

About the presenter

Rev. Dr. Ahriana Platten has traveled the world and experienced its cultural differences and human similarities. She holds a Doctorate in Pastoral Counseling Psychology, and is a trained initiate in several spiritual traditions that include Paganism, Hermetics and Metaphysical Christianity. She is an ordained interfaith minister serving Unity Spiritual Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado and has presented seminars at locations as diverse as the American Dharma Congress, ICCS Gathering of Indigenous Elders, and Creighton Jesuit University. Ahriana writes a weekly newspaper column called “In Good Faith,” and hosts a radio program of the same name. Interfaith Collaboration is her passion.